Asia Warehousing Is Changing. Is Your 3PL Keeping Up?

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Together, these factors affect service reliability, pricing, and scalability for companies that source, distribute, or manufacture across the region Warehouse Location as a Compliance Decision Across Asia, warehouse selection is increasingly a regulatory decision as much as a logistics one. Some markets still allow low-value parcels to cross borders with limited tax exposure, while others now tax all imported B2C parcels, so the right warehouse location can materially affect landed cost and compliance risk. For regulated health products, import and re-export rules may also determine whether a regional hub such as Singapore or a Taiwan FTZ is more workable than establishing a local entity in Thailand. Thailand is removing the low-value import duty exemption, which means even small cross-border B2C parcels can now face duties. Singapore’s HSA requires specific licensing for many health-product import/wholesale activities, including re-export distinctions that matter for network design. Thailand changes the landed-cost equation Under the new Thailand Customs Department policy, all imported goods, regardless of value, are subject to import duties upon entry into the country. For companies shipping small B2C parcels directly into Thailand, this changes the landed-cost calculation. Major e-commerce platforms are now required to integrate tax collection, adding import duties and a 7% VAT to the customer’s bill at checkout. That means a fulfillment model previously built around duty-free small-parcel entry now carries additional: Import duty exposure VAT obligations Product classification requirements Compliance and documentation risk For companies using cross-border B2C fulfillment, those costs now need to be factored directly into hub selection. Singapore: Local Distribution vs. Re-Export In Singapore, the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) operates an activity-based licensing framework that creates meaningful distinctions based on what a facility actually does with the goods. For therapeutic products distributed in Singapore, companies generally need: An importer’s license A wholesaler’s license Compliance with Good Distribution Practice standards The re-export pathway is different. Companies importing Chinese Proprietary Medicines into Singapore solely for export or re-export do not need to apply for the same import license for CPM. Instead, they must obtain an import-for-re-export permit. Why the distinction matters For companies designing regional B2C health-product solutions, the compliance profile changes depending on whether Singapore is the point of local distribution or a consolidation point for re-export. The re-export pathway may reduce the local licensing burden, but it still requires the warehouse operator to manage the correct permits and documentation. For one recent Dimerco inquiry, a customer evaluating B2C health-product distribution into Thailand was comparing a Singapore fulfillment hub with a Taiwan FTZ model, specifically to avoid establishing a local Thai entity and obtaining Thai FDA licensing. The right answer depends on product classification and commercial structure, but the broader point is clear: warehouse location and regulatory strategy are now inseparable. Choosing the wrong hub can create licensing obligations, unexpected landed costs, or customs compliance risks that undermine the entire fulfillment model. Automation vs. Manpower: A Maturing Trade-Off Across markets including China, Singapore, Taiwan, and, increasingly, parts of Southeast Asia, wages have risen steadily, and the pool of workers willing to take on physically demanding warehouse roles has shrunk. Turnover adds recruitment, onboarding, and training costs in addition to base wages, making labor even harder to absorb. At the same time, the capital required for automation — conveyor systems, sortation technology, goods-to-person robotics, and WMS integration to support them — has been difficult to justify on ROI grounds. Rising labor costs are changing the equation for automation Automation is increasingly seen as a way to reduce labor dependency, improve accuracy, and create a more predictable operating model as wages and labor shortages increase. For warehouse customers, this matters beyond the technology question itself. Warehouses that remain fully manual may face increasing pricing pressure as operators pass through wage inflation. Storage rates, handling fees, and fulfillment charges can all rise as labor costs increase. Automation can reduce labor dependency through mobile scanning, label-printing devices, warehouse management systems that reduce manual checking and data entry, and robotic process automation for administrative workflows, before a facility ever installs a conveyor or an AGV. Dimerco has built this logic into its warehousing approach. Across its network spanning China, Taiwan, Singapore, India, and Southeast Asia, Dimerco uses advanced WMS platforms, mobile scanning, and robotic process automation to improve accuracy and efficiency at scale. These technologies are not a replacement for operational expertise. They help protect service levels while reducing dependency on staffing. The Rise of Project-Based Warehousing: Beyond Standard Distribution The most interesting structural shift in Asia’s warehousing right now is not about technology at all, but about the changing nature of how warehouses are used. The traditional model is straightforward: a company manufactures or imports goods, stores them, and distributes them domestically or regionally through a more or less stable network. That model still exists. But companies restructuring their supply chains under “China Plus One” or similar strategies need more. They’re looking for flexible consolidation, re-export capability, and multi-market distribution across short, project-driven supply chains. Why Taiwan works well for this model Taiwan’s FTZ framework is especially useful here because it supports storage, transshipment, packaging, assembly, and export-oriented logistics with customs advantages that fit short supply chain and project shipment needs. For foreign buyers sourcing in Taiwan, a project warehouse can consolidate products from multiple suppliers, relabel or repack as needed, and distribute them directly to customers across markets such as Korea and Malaysia. This is valuable when procurement needs to remain flexible, lead times are short, and the customer wants to avoid locking inventory into a single country’s distribution structure. In practice, the warehouse serves as a coordination point for documentation, consolidation, and dispatch rather than merely a storage site. That makes Taiwan a practical hub for blind shipments or indirect distribution models where the warehouse coordinates order assembly and ships to end customers in other Asian markets without operating like a traditional local distributor. What flexible distribution requires Project-based warehousing works best when the logistics setup can support more than storage alone. That can include: Consolidation and transshipment Multi-destination routing Customs documentation and compliance Repacking and shipment preparation Outbound coordination Integration with air and ocean freight across Asia-Pacific In Taiwan, bonded and FTZ facilities can support this type of model by giving companies a practical way to coordinate complex, multi-market distribution from a single hub. Dimerco’s Taiwan warehousing capabilities are designed around these requirements, combining bonded and FTZ options with customs and freight coordination across the Asia-Pacific network. What This Means for Your Asia Warehouse Strategy For companies encountering these trends, work with a logistics partner positioned to serve complex, multi-market supply chains in Asia with the ability to advise on the regulatory implications of hub selection across different product categories and destination markets, actively manage labor dependency, and offer warehousing capabilities that support flexible models. With 150+ offices across Asia, strong relationships with regional carriers, and in-market customs expertise, Dimerco has spent decades building exactly this kind of network — connecting Asia’s logistics and manufacturing hubs to customers in North America and Europe. As the region’s warehouse landscape continues to evolve, that combination of local expertise, integrated services, and technology-enabled operations is what distinguishes a logistics partnership that holds up under pressure from one that doesn’t. If you’re evaluating your Asia warehouse strategy — whether for cost, service level, automation readiness, supply chain flexibility, or cross-border fulfillment compliance — contact Dimerco’s logistics specialists to discuss what the right solution looks like for your network. Post Tags: China | Customs Compliance | Freight Forwarding | Taiwan | USA | warehousing We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.ACCEPT Cookie settingsManage consent Close Privacy Overview This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. 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